Little Sister
by Potential Violet
Summary: "When a Gem is made, it's for a reason. They burst out of the ground already knowing what they're supposed to be, and then... that's what they are." Pink is a diamond, and while she's supposed to be in charge, there's a lot to learn before she actually is; leadership lessons begin at once... Being the youngest is never easy, especially when you're an immortal, interstellar empress.
1. Unification of the Star Queens

__The Great Spiral Temple__

 _ _Homeworld__

Even against the backdrop of stars, the flickering of the new lights was noticed immediately by the crowd of Gems below. Flickering progressed to an excited swirling, and Yellow Diamond involuntarily crossed her arms in front of her chest. Blue Diamond laid a gentle hand on her counterpart's back, she didn't share the yellow Gem's tension, but it was easy to empathise with her.

By now the frenzied rotation in the sky had expanded into a circle of light, wide enough to admit the immense hand that was already forcing its way into Homeworld's atmosphere. Almost invisible in the light, sharp white fingertips pierced through the luminous gateway in rapid succession, naturally followed by the rest of the digit they were attached to. The fingers, thumb, wrist, and then the rest of the forearm came into view until finally the ship escaped the spatial fissure, which dissipated without ceremony.

The craft adjusted its flight angle and began the descent to the planet's surface, making a slow half-rotation in mid-air that gave the impression of some offering being made to the Diamonds and their Gems. The faintest hum of the ship's engine grew audible in the night's silence as it approached, soon accompanied by the airy sound of the breeze generated by the ship's proximity to the ground.

With quiet grace the tip of the arm-ship's middle finger landed on the ground some distance from where the Diamonds were standing. The rest of the arm then fell neatly onto the surface behind with a softness that seemed at odds with the ship's considerable mass.

From an aperture in the centre of the ship's palm rose a single group of Gems, soldiers, as with their broad shoulders and imposing height they could be nothing else. The multicoloured group wasted no time in splitting into two subsections and hurrying the rest of the way down the palm, down the ramp that was the middle finger, and into two forward facing columns. The aperture opened a second time and out of it floated a large, angular object that upon reaching its full height, crawled over the ship's hull to take its place behind the soldiers.

"Oh my…" Blue Diamond said quietly when the palanquin and its guard drew nearer. It had been totally redesigned since she had last seen it: the decorative panels and entrance veil had been replaced with solid white walls, its decorative ornament swapped with a tiny communication tower further back, and a high-power laser turret mounted closer to the front. Yellow Diamond smiled at the modifications.

When they were close enough the white Gem at the front of the right column fired off an order that brought the procession to a dead stop. At the leader's next command the two columns of soldiers turned sharply to face each other, ending the manoeuvre with a simultaneous stamp of their boots on the ground. The front-facing wall of the palanquin glowed briefly before disappearing altogether, and from inside the structure came a pearl, snow-white from head to toe, almost luminous against her surroundings.

"Welcoming Her Imperial Majesty the radiant White Diamond, and her sapphire, Her Grand Clarity Sapphire Cut 1AE!" the pearl announced confidently.

A monumental figure emerged from the palanquin. She stooped slightly so as not to catch herself on the vehicle's door as she exited, and drew up to her full height once she had cleared the obstacle. True to her title, light seemed to radiate from every aspect of the largest diamond, from her pale skin, to the sparkling stone in her forehead, to the subtle iridescence of her gown and heels. 'It's good to be back.' she thought, surveying her home world's surface for the first time in a long time. She would have smiled, but knowing that she would have to leave much sooner than she wanted to took some of the joy out of being there.

Yellow and Blue Diamond waited in silence as she glided towards them, down the stairs and between her lines of guards, her sapphire and pearl in tow. Yellow Diamond straightened her posture slightly and moved her arms so that they crossed behind her instead. Then she was upon them.

"White, it's so good to see you! We doubted if you'd even be able to come." Blue Diamond said as she hugged the taller Gem, either unwilling or unable to contain her excitement at White's return.

"It's good to see you too, Blue." White replied as she put her arms around the other diamond. "And you needn't have worried, __nothing__ could've made me miss this."

The pair broke their embrace and White turned to Yellow Diamond:

"White." Yellow acknowledged her with a polite nod.

"Yellow." White responded in kind. She looked into the other Gem's yellow eyes, placing a hand on her shoulder as she thought of the best move to make next. In the end she decided against hugging Yellow as well, but gave her shoulder an affectionate squeeze. "I've missed you both."

"We've missed you too." Blue quickly answered for herself and Yellow, who said nothing. "You've been gone longer than we— I expected… You could always come back to the Crystal System, if the danger out there is too great… We can help you."

White smiled, Blue was always so caring. "Thank you, Blue. I admit that operations could be going better, but a few exotics are nothing that I can't handle." she reassured her. Yellow turned her head away.

"But this is supposed to be a celebration. We can discuss these things later, right now, we have a new diamond to receive. Shall we?" White suggested.

"She's not coming with us, is she?" Yellow suddenly demanded, gesturing to the smallest member of their party.

The white sapphire was unmissable, possessing no eyes (such was the placement of her gem) and dressed in an ornate black jumpsuit more fitting for a lower ranking Gem. It was obvious to Yellow that she was special in some way, White wouldn't have brought her otherwise. What annoyed her was the fact that White had been gone for so long, and now that she __was__ back she had brought this intruder into their business. The pearls were a given, a necessity, but sapphires were not… bringing the tiny Gem along detracted from the already short time the three of them would have together.

"Sapphire has served me admirably through the very direst of situations. Her personal qualities go far beyond those one observes in the ordinary sapphire, and she exceeds my expectations of her time and again. She is to be present at this momentous occasion."

"My Diamond." the sapphire said with a respectful bow when Yellow glanced at her once more.

"...If she must." Yellow said to White before moving in the direction of the crater.

…

White Diamond had named the Great Spiral after the circular, concentric depressions that had been mined deep into Homeworld's crust. In anticipation of Yellow and Blue's emergence she had had two long, parallel staircases constructed, beginning on the surface far from the crater's edge and leading straight into the unique, square shaped depression at the bottom.

When the diamonds reached the end of the sloping passageway they waited for the other Gems to join them, unreasonable as it was to expect their attendants to traverse the giant steps of their own staircase.

Of the four walls that made up the enclosure, three of them were dominated by massive, Gem shaped exit holes. It was to the side of the last wall that the party stood.

"Sapphire, how long is there to wait?" Yellow asked the clairvoyant.

"There are but minutes until her arrival, my Diamond." Sapphire answered.

Those minutes passed like seconds and as promised, the ground soon began to tremble. Lose stones were made to dance across the ground by the vibrations, while sand and small rocks dislodged from higher up trickled into the excavation. The earthquake steadily grew in intensity until it became a real concern for the smaller Gems, they exchanged nervous glances as they fought for their balance against the violent shaking. Blue and Yellow had observed emergences before but had never witnessed one in person, and had certainly never heard of shocks of this magnitude accompanying the process… the Gem incubating in the wall was clearly one of great power, and excitement, apprehension, fear and pride fought for control of the middle diamonds' minds.

Then the shaking came to an abrupt stop.

The sudden calm and white-hot glow of the rock marked the final phase of the awakening, and erring on the side of caution, the group took another step away from the centreline of the wall. With her incubation now complete, the new diamond blasted a way out of the crust for herself — the force of the explosion spraying a mixture of molten and solid rock right across the crater.

The new diamond seemed to view gravity as more of a suggestion than a rule, if her leisurely descent to the ground was any indication. She landed as gracefully as a pearl, soundless, save for a quiet hissing as the heat of her formation dispersed, and proceeded to take in her new environment. It wasn't long before she caught sight of… her audience? Yes, she decided that they must be her audience, for they were all watching her…

Blue wanted to hug the little Gem from the second she landed, an urge which only grew stronger when she turned to look at them. If White was to be described as regal and Yellow as commanding, then the newest member of their order could only be described as cute — so very, impossibly cute... She moved to introduce herself and the others to the peculiar diamond, only for White to tell her to wait. So she remained where she was and inevitably, Pink Diamond made her way towards them instead. She strode confidently, the image of poise and purpose despite her diminutive height… exactly what a diamond was expected to be.

When she was close enough White stepped forward to inspect her. The matriarch carefully scrutinised the newcomer, passing around her in a slow circle, watchful for even the smallest of flaws.

"What are you doing?" Pink demanded with a frown.

"Ensuring that you're everything you should be." White answered calmly.

"Well stop. I __am__ everything I should be because I'm a diamond. That means I'm perfect."

"Yes, so far…" White agreed, not pausing from her task. She took a knee in front of Pink and brought her face very close to the smaller diamond's, studying her features.

"Hey!" Pink complained, taking a step backwards. "You need to—!"

"Be quiet." commanded White. "And keep still."

"You keep still! I'm a very important Gem, you can't tell __me__ —!"

"Enough! I've told you to be quiet once already, I'm not going to tell you again…"

Pink scowled in indignation and clenched her fists, but made no further attempts to speak or move. Even when White reached down and ran a fingertip over her gem she remained still.

"Magnificent…" the diamond said in a soft, faraway voice as she traced the digit around the stone's pentagonal outline.

Now thoroughly displeased with the tall, overbearing, possibly unstable Gem that had accosted her, Pink was considering how to make her go away when she removed her hand and looked her in the eye. With an unexpected kindness she said:

"I hope that you won't hold my caution against me, but our perfection is what singles us out as leaders — it must remain undeniable if our authority is to do the same. In your perfection, I welcome you to Homeworld, Pink Diamond."

"If you didn't want me to hold it against you then you should've said that before you started harassing me." Pink declared. "And why do __you__ get to make sure I'm 'everything I should be'?"

"Harassing you? How very droll..." the other diamond mused, chuckling for a moment.

Pink didn't like the sound at all, it managed to be both nonchalant and piercing at the same time, in a way that hinted that she'd failed to grasp something very important…

"Only a diamond is worthy of passing judgement on another diamond, and as I was the first of us to emerge there's no Gem in existence better qualified to make sure of your flawlessness. Had our places been reversed the task would have fallen to you — though equally, Yellow or Blue could have performed it."

For the first time since White had approached her, Pink looked over to the other diamonds: Yellow looked back at her impassively, while Blue offered a small wave. She turned back to White:

"So you're a white diamond?"

" _ _The__ white diamond. I'm unique, as are you."

"Oh… But wait, if you emerged first then who checked __you__ for flaws?" Pink asked, an authoritative note creeping into her voice.

White smiled.

"Yellow and Blue did when they were in your position. Just as they were told to."

"Are you going to tell me to?" asked Pink expectantly.

"No, but you're welcome to conduct a check of your own, if you doubt my sincerity…"

"That won't be necessary."

She had no doubt about White's sincerity: her immaculate appearance, sparkling gemstone and gentle glow were just the parts that Pink could see, and her demeanour suggested there were many, many more ways in which the Gem before her was perfect. Even if there was an issue to comment on, White's words sounded more like a challenge than any kind of invitation… Besides, the fact that someone had beaten her to it took all the fun out of the idea.

"In that case it's time you met the others. Come." said White, already getting to her feet.

…


	2. The Subtleties

…

It was a good thing that the other Gems were so near, Pink thought, because she had to make a serious effort to keep up with White's huge steps. Either the white Gem had forgotten their size difference already, or still expected to her to keep up. Pink wasn't sure if either was a good thing… When they reached the small crowd White introduced them all.

"Blue, Yellow, this is Pink Diamond. Pink, Blue and Yellow Diamond, the only others of our gem type."

"Welcome, Pink. It's a pleasure to meet you at last, we've been expecting you." Blue said, and knelt down to wrap her up in the hug that she'd been waiting to give her.

Pink was caught off guard by the second intrusion into her personal space, but instead of pointing out the diamond's disregard for boundaries (which she now suspected might be a characteristic of their type) she surprised herself by returning the hug. She had no idea why she suddenly felt so happy to be meeting this stranger, or why the thought of holding on to her forever seemed so appealing… and yet it did. She started to laugh for no apparent reason. Even Yellow felt the worst of the edge coming off her reservations about the new diamond, but her practical nature wouldn't allow her to let go of them:

"Am I missing something?" she asked in a sharp voice.

"I highly doubt it, though it's impossible to be certain without context..." White prompted.

"The context is her size. Look at her, she's barely taller than the largest quartz. Why is she so small?"

"Yellow!" Blue chided. Although now that it had been said, she was also curious as to why Pink was so much smaller than them.

"Don't call me small just because I'm smaller than you! Maybe you're too big."

"I wasn't talking to you." Yellow snapped.

"But she does raise a valid point." said White.

"In what way—" she started, but then turned to face Pink instead, deeming it wiser to silence the lesser Gem before discussing the matter with White. "'Maybe I'm too big'? Don't be ridiculous, look at the three of us and then look at yourself! Your size is quite clearly an irregularity."

"It's not 'clearly an irregularity'! White is taller than you, you and Blue are taller than me. There's a pattern, going from first to last — like our emergence… ces."

"Yes but the difference is that our heights clearly separate us from those who rank below us, yours doesn't."

"But… you still said I was bigger than the largest quartz… And it's not all about height anyway. White saw that I'm perfect, and I'm still a diamond... Why are you even complaining?"

"See, Yellow? Now you've upset her. Was this argument really necessary?" asked Blue.

"I'm not upset…" said Pink, looking a little upset.

"I wasn't complaining, I merely wanted to know if your height was cause for concern, as it would be in any other cut of Gem." Yellow said.

"But we're not any other cut of Gem, are we? You should keep your silly questions to yourself in future, or ask me properly if you're going to ask at all."

" _Excuse me_?"

The ice in Yellow's voice let Pink know that she'd just made a serious error. She noticed for the first time just how much taller than her the other Gem actually was, and how… sharp everything about her was, especially her frown. Her authority hit Pink like a tangible object, nothing like the feeling she'd had while White was speaking to her… it left room enough for her to question what might happen if she stepped out of line - or further out of line, as it was - and she was afraid of the answers.

She was afraid of Yellow.

But this was an opportunity. She wanted Yellow to treat her like the diamond she was, and she was now in a position to demand that treatment through her actions. If she gave in to Yellow now then she'd keep treating her a like lesser Gem, but fighting back would show that she was stronger than that. Deciding that it was best thing for her, she did her best to ignore her fear and answered Yellow how she would answer anyone else (anyone except White).

"You heard me. You've heard everything else so far."

"And I refuse to hear any more! You have shown me more disrespect since you emerged than any other Gem has in the last thousand years, and you would do well to stop talking and start listening before you disgrace yourself any further! Your status as a diamond demands obedience from those below you, **not** the respect of those on your level! If you wish to earn our respect then you can start by behaving in a manner that befits a Gem of your station. It's the very least you can do, instead of offending this Authority with your shallow-cut notions... Follow our example and accomplish something of merit, maybe by then you will have thought of an argument worth having."

"That will suffice, Yellow. Your point has been made." White interjected, barely concealing her smile at the way things had developed.

Pink knew that she had brought it on herself, but that didn't make Yellow's words hurt any less. It didn't seem like her stand had even been noticed, and White and Blue hadn't come to her aid… The only thing she'd accomplished was making herself look foolish — the inconsequential, ill-mannered Gem that Yellow believed her to be. She bowed her head and brought a hand to her eye, quietly sniffling as she failed to hold back her tears.

Blue glared at Yellow with an intensity that few unbroken Gems had ever witnessed.

"Unbelievable…" Yellow muttered, and turned away from the more sentimental members of the group to address White. "I assume there's nothing else that needs to be done here, in which case can we leave now?"

"...Yes, our business here is complete. Walk with me." White replied. "Blue, Pink, don't linger. Sapphire, be sure to introduce yourself." she commanded.

"Of course, my Diamond." said Sapphire.

The pair departed, taking their pearls with them.

Pink was still crying after the exchange and there was no indication that she would stop any time soon. Blue walked over to where she stood and knelt down once again, swiftly taking the little Gem into her arms and holding her tightly. The smaller diamond was grateful for the comfort that Blue provided, and for the fact that she hadn't left her behind. Like before, she found that she didn't want to let go, and thankfully she didn't have to: Blue was patient as the hug did its work and her sobbing died down. When Blue sensed that Pink had stopped crying, she let go of her and carefully wiped the last tears from her face.

"You handled Yellow very well." she said kindly.

"I did?" asked Pink.

"I would say so. Not many Gems would be willing to speak their mind to her like you did, much less if they'd just emerged."

"But they still don't think I'm good enough…"

"No, that's not true. White was definitely impressed, you could tell. Well… _I_ could tell, you'll have to get to know her better. And don't worry about Yellow for now, she isn't always like that. She only wants what's best for Gemkind, and because you're a diamond she expects the best from you. It isn't your fault that you don't know her yet." She smiled reassuringly.

"Thank you."

"She made a good point though. In order to learn how to do what we do you'll need to pay close attention to Yellow and I. Only when you prove to us that you're fit rule will you be allowed to."

"I-I can do that."

"Of course you can, you're a diamond. Now, let's make our way back to the surface before they start wondering why we're still here."

…

Faced with the two flights of stairs, one for diamonds and the other for smaller Gems, Pink opted for the one that fit her size better. It was as she started to climb the staircase that Sapphire seized the opportunity to talk to the new Gem, Blue Diamond being finished with her for the moment.

"My Diamond, Sapphire Cut 1AE at your service." she said with a bow. "It's an honour to not only meet you, but to have witnessed your emergence as well."

"Wow, you're a sapphire…! And thank you, it's nice to meet you too. You're the first other gem type that I've met." Pink replied.

"Then I will do my best to make a good impression."

"So… why are you the only one? Apart from the pearls there aren't any other non-diamonds here."

"Normally only diamonds and their pearls may visit this place. I enjoy a very privileged position at my diamond's side, and was given her permission to be here."

"I see. Sorry! That wasn't very nice." said Pink, noticing the placement of Sapphire's gem.

"Pink, you don't have to excuse yourself for a Sapphire." said Blue.

That struck Pink as being very rude, she hoped that Sapphire didn't mind… But if that was how she was supposed to conduct herself then she didn't want to get Sapphire in trouble with her reaction.

"It's fine." Sapphire said quietly, and smiled at her.

"But how do you know where anything is if you don't have any eyes?" Pink continued.

"My future vision shows me the immediate future with such clarity that it compensates for my lack of sight."

"That's amazing! Oh my stars, so can you tell me what's going to happen in my immediate future!?"

"I'd be happy to." Sapphire answered. A few seconds later she had a result. "You're going to ask Blue Diamond for your pearl."

"...Interesting… But will I be asking because we've had this conversation?"

"This conversation has moved the event forward slightly, but it's something you were always going to ask."

"I _really_ like you." Pink told her with a huge grin. A light-grey blush quickly darkened Sapphire's cheeks. "But Blue, where __is__ my pearl?"

"She hasn't been made yet." Blue informed her.

"Why not? You were all waiting for me, you knew I was coming."

"Pearls are specially made for their owners, and you need to be there at the start of the process so they can take the necessary readings from you, and a sample of your speech,"

"Ooh! Can we do it now!?"

"Very soon. The Nacrarium has been on standby since the first predictions of your arrival. They've been told to be ready so that construction of your pearl may begin as soon as possible."

"Yes! I want one with her gem where mine is so we'll match, like you, Yellow and White and your pearls."

"No. That's not a good idea. The chest is the usual place for a pearl's gem, a chest placement yields the most desirable qualities in a pearl."

"So why is White's pearls' gem in her forehead?"

"Many of White's entourage have forehead placements, their qualities suit the way she prefers to work."

"So why can't I have mine placed where I want? If we have the same placement then won't my pearl be suited to the way I prefer to work?"

Blue laughed.

"Tell me, how _do_ you prefer to work?"

"Umm... Well?" said Pink, making Blue laugh again.

"Even if you did know, you have yet to understand the subtleties of gem placement. Just remember this for now: in a pearl, the navel is one of the least favourable positions for the gem to be in; the navel, the upper back, the eye, the cheek— all are unwise choices when it comes to pearls."

"Why?"

"Pearls with those placements have the highest defect rates."

"Oh, okay… Well I want one with a forehead placement then."

"I'm sure White would like that."

"Can I get a sapphire too?"

"No, Pink. You'll have no need of a sapphire for a long time."

That didn't really matter to her though, she felt a lot better now than she had all day. Things were looking up: Blue was really nice, White seemed reasonable, and if she could impress Yellow like Blue suggested, then ruling with the others was going be so much fun.

She couldn't wait to get started.

…


End file.
